Bought a slightly used, Rem 700, .223 Light Varmint Stainless Fluted. Installed a new Leupold VX2, 3-9X, handloaded some 50 grain rounds, sighted in and grouped an average of 1/2 MOA, without tuning seating depth.
I look out the side window and there's a dark chuck on my side of the son's barn. If I don't get it, it may come over to our house and make holes in my lawn.
Okay, so I drive over to the son's place and the only safe angle puts me about 25 feet away from where I saw the chuck. I sat on an equipment trailer tire and waited. After a couple of minutes, a head appeared between the barn and a shed. Then, the chuck came out and turned away from me, so up came the rifle. It turned sideways and I managed to see fur in the scope and squeezed the trigger.
If it wasn't for the concern over holes in my lawn, I'd never have shot a chuck at such a close range. It's ironic that the first kill with a rifle capable of hitting smaller targets at 200 yards or more was used, but after shooting several with the WMR last year and having some get back to the hole, the .223 was just the ticket.
The rifle has been carried on the woods road and fields for several miles now and has fully met my expectations for a light walkabout rifle, weighing only 7.6 lbs. with scope. The .223 round is perfect for the ranges encountered on the property, about 200 yards max.
(Note: Picture exaggerates the barrel's diameter...only 0.6" at the muzzle.)
I look out the side window and there's a dark chuck on my side of the son's barn. If I don't get it, it may come over to our house and make holes in my lawn.
Okay, so I drive over to the son's place and the only safe angle puts me about 25 feet away from where I saw the chuck. I sat on an equipment trailer tire and waited. After a couple of minutes, a head appeared between the barn and a shed. Then, the chuck came out and turned away from me, so up came the rifle. It turned sideways and I managed to see fur in the scope and squeezed the trigger.
If it wasn't for the concern over holes in my lawn, I'd never have shot a chuck at such a close range. It's ironic that the first kill with a rifle capable of hitting smaller targets at 200 yards or more was used, but after shooting several with the WMR last year and having some get back to the hole, the .223 was just the ticket.
The rifle has been carried on the woods road and fields for several miles now and has fully met my expectations for a light walkabout rifle, weighing only 7.6 lbs. with scope. The .223 round is perfect for the ranges encountered on the property, about 200 yards max.
(Note: Picture exaggerates the barrel's diameter...only 0.6" at the muzzle.)
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